The Oswego chapter of the YMCA held its annual Pumpkin Festival on Oct. 1 and 2, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days at Washington Square Park.
The Pumpkin Festival, which is co-sponsored by the City of Oswego, included local vendors, live music and carnival rides. The festival is a fundraiser for YMCA programs. Craft stands and vendors were available. Fort Ontario volunteers were in colonial garb and the Girl Scouts were providing lunch and dinner refreshments. Ontario Amusements, an Oswego amusement ride company, provided several kiddie rides, including the Dizzy Dragon and the Hampton Car Ride.
Local musicians played live music from a stage in the middle of the park. The first day of the festival hosted a concert by the Desantis Orchestra, a 12-piece act featuring music from seven decades. Other musicians included classic rock cover band PK Experience, acoustic duo Twisted Folk and folk rock band New York Relics.
Liz Dishaw and Tammy Sharkey had always been patrons of the Pumpkin Festival, but this year’s event was the first they participated as vendors. They run Heart of the Barn Creations, a handmade craft store in Mexico, New York.
“It’s wonderful. I mean, the crowds, all the crafts are all top quality crafts. Hopefully if [we] have enough inventory we’ll be here every year,” Dishaw said.
Dishaw was not the only one who had positive words to share about the festival.
“Yesterday was amazing,” Sharkey said. “We made more money yesterday than ever in one day in a fest.” She added that it was a “positive place to be,” to which Dishaw agreed.
Elizabeth Joy runs Vant Farms, a family-owned farm in Volney who had a stand at the festival. The stand sold a variety of crops for the beginning of the harvest season.
“We just sell produce, we have pumpkins, we have hay bales, mums, just all kinds of stuff,” Joy said.
Joy was glad to report that they had “a really good year” for pumpkins, thanks to the weather which contributed to their “rocky feel.” The stand also sold decorative flint corn tied with autumnal themed ribbons, as well as two large photo stand-ins for photo ops. Vant Farms also had a stand at the Central Square Apple Festival.
Executive director Trish Levine emphasized the focus of the festival on the local community.
“We don’t do MLM [multi-level marketing] sales, we stick to the small vendor, the handcrafting vendor for our local community, because everything we do here now is for the family as a whole,” Levine said.
Planning for the festival is a year-long project. “We start preparing right after we get done with the festival,” Levine said. “This year, we’ll start planning for the following year.”
The festival has been running for 41 years, with a hiatus in 2020 due to the pandemic. It was originally the project of the Oswego Chamber of Commerce, but since 2019 the festival is now planned and operated by the Oswego YMCA.
Photo via oswegony.org
